The invention relates to a medical cutting device for producing thin cartilage disks. The device includes a device body, a cover and a first holding device having a first section with a first recess disposed on the top side of the device body, the recess entirely or partially enclosed by a first delimiting ridge. The cutting device is made of a sterilizable material.
Frequently in medical and surgical practice, it becomes necessary to cut thin, endogeneous cartilage disks out of a larger piece of cartilage, e.g., from the auricle, the tragus, the cartilaginous portion of the upper bony rib or the nasal septum. For example, it may be necessary to examine special properties of the main body in greater detail, in particular under a microscope. In otorhinolaryngology, thin cartilage disks of this type also are required in many surgical applications, such as in the middle ear region, to cover a middle ear prosthesis, to restore the posterior wall of the auditory meatus or for the plastic repair of a defect of the tympanic membrane. Thin cartilage disks of this type are also used in many nasal surgeries in order to perform functional or aesthetic corrections of the nose.
A cutting device is described in EP 0 483 567 B1, using which thin cartilage disks having a thickness that is specifiable, within certain limits, are cut out of a larger piece of cartilage quickly reliably and with a consistent level of quality. However, to obtain different thicknesses of the cartilage disks that are created, special shims having a known thickness must be placed in the cutting device. These shims, like the cutting device itself, must be thoroughly cleaned and kept sterile and they must be handled in this manner separately before every operation, which is a time-consuming process that is susceptible to error. Considering that an average ear, nose and throat (ENT) hospital has three to four surgical suites, and that, at peak times, fifteen to twenty patients may be operated on in one day, it is possible that a cartilage cutter must be made available up to fifteen times a day. This poses a great logistical challenge in terms of supplying sterilized materials.
Moreover, handling the shims is not entirely easy. For example, due to the small size of the shims, it is not always possible to label them adequately and in an easily recognized manner, even though this is necessary in order to ensure that precisely the proper shim having the particular size that is required is available during the operation. In addition, special skills are required to insert the relatively small shims into the cutting device correctly and to fix them in position therein.
In order to ensure that thin cartilage disks having certain different thicknesses are created in a consistent level of quality, even without using the known shims, US 2010/0286693 A1 proposes that a first recess disposed in a first working section on a top side of the device body is closable via a first projection disposed on a top side of the cover, wherein the first lateral delimiting ridge comprises a first guide slot into which a cutting blade is inserted and which extends from an end face of the first section and extends parallel to the bottom surface of the first recess at a predetermined, first distance therefrom. In the device according to US 2010/0286693 A1, at least one second holding device is provided that comprises a second section having a second recess, which is disposed on the top side of the device body, the second recess being entirely or partially enclosed by a second delimiting ridge, and being closable via a second projection which is disposed on the top side of the cover. The second lateral delimiting ridge comprises a second guide slot, into which a cutting blade is inserted and which extends from an end face of the second section and extends parallel to the bottom surface of the second recess at a predetermined, second distance therefrom.
Since different distances between the particular guide slot and the corresponding bottom surface of the particular recess may be selected for different holding devices, this known cutting device makes it possible to create cartilage disks having certain different thicknesses by using the different holding devices without the need to use the shims that are indispensible in the previous prior art. In addition, the fact that the new cutting device is handled between the thumb and the index finger increases the operating surgeon's confidence in the actual cutting procedure, because all parts, due to the geometry and design thereof, are moveable relative to one another in a reliable and controlled manner.
The disadvantage of this known cutting device is that the production of the parts is highly complex. Products produced using injection-molding technology in particular have the characteristic that considerable problems can result when walls are very thin. As a result and due to the financial outlay involved, the products typically cannot be produced in a cost-effective manner.